1. Technical Field
The present invention is directed toward shipping containers, and more particularly toward containers for shipping acid filled batteries.
2. Background Art
In most air transport, passengers requiring wheelchairs are required to store their wheelchairs separately from the passenger compartment. Further, extra care must be taken with electrically operated wheelchairs powered by batteries, as the batteries are typically "wet" batteries containing powerful acid which could cause damage if spilled. Depending on the circumstances, spillage of damaging battery acid could even result in failure to crucial aircraft components (for example, aircraft electronics) with catastrophic results.
As a result of this potential, the batteries are removed from electrically operated wheelchairs being transported in aircraft and separately stored for protection. Typically, the batteries have been separately stored in boxes kept in the luggage compartment of the aircraft, where the boxes have a foam lining or other material intended to absorb any leaked battery acid (such as kitty litter).
Of course, boxes using loose absorbent material are messy to use. Even in the best conditions, the transported battery can end up with the material stuck all over it. Also, it is almost unavoidable that the small grains of the material will end up spilling, especially when the box is opened during packing or unpacking.
Further, boxes using loose absorbent materials are difficult to use. That is, supplying the proper amount of material needed for such boxes complicates maintenance of proper inventory of such boxes, particularly if the boxes are maintained separately from the absorbent material. Further, while inventory can be simplified by providing each box with its own portion of absorbent material already in it, it is then difficult to get the battery down into the center of the material. Still further, even if a battery is properly located initially within the loose material for shifting, the battery can shift within such material, with the result being that battery acid leaking to one side of the container will encounter little, if any, of the protective material required to prevent its leaking from the container.
In addition to these problems with containers using loose materials, it has also been found that such containers (whether used with loose absorbent materials or not) are still fully reliable only in ideal conditions in which only minimal amounts of acid leak from the battery. Unfortunately, such ideal conditions are not always encountered in air travel. For example, during flights in which the aircraft attitude is changed abruptly, whether due to weather or other conditions, the prior art boxes have occasionally been found to tip over. When this occurs, the battery acid essentially pours from the battery with the result often being that the acid soaks through the foam or other absorbent material in the box. When that occurs, the acid damages whatever it touches, typically other people's luggage stored near the battery.
Obviously, such occurrences are upsetting to the people who have their luggage damaged, so that the leakage not only results in physical damage to property but also in even greater damage to the reputation and good will of the airline (such incidents are not soon forgotten by the "victims").
Still further, persons dependent on the powered wheelchair will also be upset to find, upon their arrival at their destination, that the battery is damaged and thus the wheelchair which they rely on and which was in perfectly good shape when they entrusted it to the airline is now inoperable. In such situations, the airlines are faced with the choice of either keeping a supply of all types of batteries on hand at all of their destinations for replacement, or leaving the person stranded without use of their wheelchair. The first option is prohibitively costly. The second option should be unacceptable not merely for "moral" reasons but also for business reasons--today's airlines are especially competitive and thus especially reliant on getting repeat passengers from their good will and positive reputation.
Of course, there are many different configurations of containers in other fields which reliably seal hazardous materials (for example, toxic and nuclear wastes). However, such containers are often difficult and clumsy to use and, most importantly, require use of expensive materials, expensive components, and/or expensive manufacturing techniques. Further, such containers are often configured without consideration to the overall weight of the container, whereas weight is a particularly important consideration in air transport.
The present invention is directed toward overcoming one or more of the problems set forth above.